Doing Business In Argentina

Goods: Preference will be given to domestic goods. The origin of the goods shall be
determined by the nature/composition of the goods themselves, not based on the
nationality or ownership of the manufacturing company. Goods containing imported
parts shall be considered domestically produced when the value of the imported parts is
no more than 40 percent of the sales value of the finished good, or when the imported
product undergoes substantial transformation in country; such that the MERCOSUR
tariff classification code of the transformed item differs from that of the imported part.
Services: Preference will be given to bids submitted by a domestic company or
consultant.
Public Works: Preference will be given to domestic materials and to domestic services
(i.e., project design, management, and construction services) as defined above.
Preferential Treatment:
In cash payment conditions, when the cost of the domestic goods is five or seven
percent higher than the cost of the imported/foreign goods, the contracting party should
select the domestic goods. SMEs - seven percent; other companies - five percent. In the
case of deregulated markets, the contracting party should select the domestic goods
when the value quoted is equal to or lower than that of the imported/foreign goods.
The above applies only when the domestic goods meet all the requirements set forth in
the contracting documents and can fulfill the expected functions (idénticas o similares
prestaciones).
Foreign Goods:
When a bidder offers to supply foreign goods not available in country, he/she must
guarantee "nationalization" of the goods by depositing a bond on behalf of the
contracting party. In addition, the Secretariat of Industry, Commerce and SMEs will issue
a certificate verifying the value of the goods to be purchased abroad at the request of the
contracting party, within 96 hours of receiving said request. To obtain the Certificate of
Verification (Certificado De Verificación-CDV), the contracting party must submit a sworn
statement declaring (1) that it has complied with the Compre Argentino regime, (2) the
end price or value of the foreign goods, and (3) that said price or value is lower than that
of domestic goods offered or that no domestic goods were offered.
Disputes:
Whenever the selection of imported/foreign goods is challenged, the Secretariat of
Industry, Commerce and SMEs will determine whether the domestic goods offered in
fact meet all the requirements set forth in the contracting documents and can fulfill the
expected functions (idénticas o similares prestaciones) in the same manner as the
imported/foreign goods selected. The Secretariat may request the advice of the National
Institute of Industrial Technology (Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Industrial-INTI) or any
other body accredited by the Argentine Accreditation Organization (Organismo Argentino
de Acreditación-OAA). If the challenge fails, the challenging party pays the costs of the
Secretariat's intervention; if the challenge succeeds, the bidder offering the
imported/foreign goods pays the costs.
3/4/2008